To Cry As A Phoenix
by Phoenix Tears Type 6
Summary: After an abusive summer, Harry notices some differences in himself. He cries more, but the tears are pearly. Voldemort knows; could this be bad?
1. Hauntings and Hopelessness

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. no one does! Owning people is illegal, right?  
  
Summary: During the school year, Harry notices some weird changes. Not the usual changes in a teenager, mind you. Lots of Harry torture and angst, abusive Vernon, some Sirius Black, and who knows what else as I write this. You'll just need to read to find out more.  
  
A/N: This chapter's probably going to be a little slow, but, it's essential. Kind of a building block for what's to come. It'll get better though, I promise. This is just necessary to write the rest.  
  
To Cry As A Phoenix  
  
By Mars Raven (Phoenix Tears Type Six)  
  
"During the rise of the Gnome Empire, in the year 431 BC, Heckbok, the German elf, assemble troops to-"  
  
Harry tuned out the droning voice of his history of magic teacher, Professor Binns. It was much more interesting to listen to Fred and George, whispering tales to Dean, Seamus, Parvati, and Lavender. One might ask 'why is Fred and George in Harry's fifth year class?' The answer is simple. So they could liven it up. They, like all seventh years, were allowed to choose one other class to take as an extra, so, why not go with the one that needed their influence the most?  
  
"So, anyway," Fred whispered, excitedly, "we waited until he was facing the Head Table, so he wouldn't see us. Then, BAM! We used the Gibber spell!"  
  
"The Gibber spell?" asked Parvati, "what's that?"  
  
"You don't know what the Gibber spell is?" George gasped, looking at her in disbelief, "It's only the best prank spell ever!"  
  
"Well, second best," Fred corrected.  
  
"Whatever," George said. "Anyway, once you cast the Gibber spell, the person you cast it on keeps gibbering! They can't stop!"  
  
"Our victim was Percy," Fred said, proudly. Ron had to put his head in his arms to keep from laughing outright. Hermione had a small smile on her face, though she was pretending not to listen.  
  
"What happened?" Seamus asked.  
  
"Well, Percy got in front of everyone in the Great Hall to lecture us about leaky ink wells."  
  
"Ug! What is it with him? Leaky cauldron bottoms, leaky ink wells; his brain must be leaky!" Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Dumbledor let him talk to the whole school about it?" Hermione asked, now tuning out Binns as well.  
  
"Yeah," said Fred, impatiently, "but wait until you hear what happened! Anyway, while we were all at the table, we cast the spell! He had no idea!"  
  
"So he went up to the front to start talking. He started out well enough, but once he started talking about 'leaks', he started gibbering about every bed accident he ever had! In front of everyone!"  
  
Everyone doubled over in silent gales of laughter; everyone except for Harry. He managed a weak smile before concentrating on Binn's lecture on Gnome battle strategies again. This didn't go unnoticed by a certain Hermione though.  
  
~*Flashback*~  
  
Harry stepped out of his uncle's car with a deep sense of foreboding. His uncle had been watching him, the entire way home. It was quite unnerving, especially since Harry couldn't remember doing anything wrong yet. Hedwig stayed silent within her cage, as if she could sense the tension in the air.  
  
Harry heaved up his trunk, unassisted by his uncle, to the front door. Wordlessly, Vernon opened the door and motioned Harry inside.  
  
Harry later regretted stepping back within the confines of the Dursley home He noticed right away that Dudley and Petunia were nowhere in sight. Dudley. Harry felt like a rock had sunk in his stomach. The prank. It was that stupid prank.  
  
Vernon whirled around and faced Harry.  
  
~*End flashback*~  
  
Harry was jolted out of his memories when he heard his name.  
  
"Pardon?" He asked, as he looked at Fred and George's expectant faces.  
  
"We said: 'That was some prank we pulled on that whale of a cousin you have, eh Harry?'"  
  
Harry immediately stiffened. His face was a shade of white that rivaled the color of chalk. This went unnoticed by everyone except Hermione again. Harry forced a smile on his face.  
  
"Bloody brilliant," he said, in a strained voice.  
  
"Why thank you!" George beamed.  
  
Hermione's eyes studied Harry's face for a moment longer before refocusing on the lesson. She needed to speak to Dumbledor soon.  
  
  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
  
Dumbledor gave a wary sigh as he rubbed his forehead. Things had gotten increasingly worse over the summer. Fudge was stillin denial. He blamed all disappearances on an 'increase in the Lethifold population'. As for deaths, he blamed the Hags. In result, many Hags had been arrested or killed over the summer. Even if they weren't the planets greatest creatures, it still wasn't right to arrest and kill them.  
  
Not only was all of this going on, but Fudge also seemed to be determined to find some way to have Dumbledor removed from Hogwarts. Luckily, most of the workers at the Ministry had been students of Dumbledor's at one point in time, and the thought of firing Dumbledor horrified them.  
  
Arthur Weasley was working hard to bring the truth to light about Voldemort, inside the Ministry walls. He had succeeded in convincing a number of people, and they had formed a sort of Underground that sorted through files in the ministry for information on Death Eater attacks. The Underground didn't really have an official name yet, but that hardly seemed to matter. Fudge still didn't know that Death Eaters also worked inside the Ministry, so that turned the information gathering into a game of 'who can get the information faster: the Death Eaters or the Underground'. And both sides had to make sure that Fudge didn't find out.  
  
Dumbledor was brought back from his musings when Fawkes, the Phoenix, gave an annoyed trill. Dumbledor chanced a look at him, and followed his line of vision. He was looking out the window that overlooked the castle grounds. Minister Fudge had just entered the gates and was making his way to the main entrance.  
  
Dumbledor sat down again, knowing they were going to have one of their little 'chats' again. This was going to be a frustrating game.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Fred! What do you get when you cross a Vampire with a bottle of grease?"  
  
"Snape!" both boys cried, in unison. The Gryffindors shook with silent laughter. Oh yes, Fred and George in their History of Magic class was bloody brilliant.  
  
Hermione had stopped taking notes an hour ago. Her main concern was finding an appropriate time to sneak off to talk to Dumbledor, while not arousing suspicion from Ron or Harry. She knew that Ron wouldn't understand, and Harry would outright deny anything and everything. Hermione had her suspicions though, and she was determined to have them confirmed.  
  
Harry was sitting in his sit, half listening to Fred and George, and half trying to escape from his summer memories. He was still unaware of the scrutinizing gaze he was under, from Hermione. He was too busy fighting a losing battle with his memories.  
  
  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
  
~*Resume flashback*~  
  
Harry later regretted stepping back within the confines of the Dursley home He noticed right away that Dudley and Petunia were nowhere in sight. Dudley. Harry felt like a rock had sunk in his stomach. The prank. It was that stupid prank.  
  
Vernon whirled around and faced Harry. His face was frighteningly emotionless. It didn't look angry or upset; just blank. There was no other way to accurately describe it. Harry blinked in surprise when he realized his uncle was talking while he had been thinking.  
  
"Your freak junk is going to be locked in the attic. You are NOT to even attempt to reach it. If you try such a thing, you shall be punished. Secondly, you will send that filthy animal," he gestured towards Hedwig, "to one of your weirdo friends, or I'll shoot it and stuff it! Third, you will not be going back to that freak school again!"  
  
Harry's discomfort was replaced by a welling rage.  
  
"And what if I refuse?"  
  
"Then you will be punished." After these words were said, an eerie sort of smile appeared on Vernon's face.  
  
"You can't stop me," Harry said, confidently, "If you try to stop me, my Godfather will come for me! All I'd need to do is write to him!" Harry suddenly felt confused and slightly alarmed when Vernon's grin got wider, accompanied with an insane sounding laugh. Harry didn't have long to wonder why, though. Vernon reached into his pocket and handed Harry a parchment.  
  
~*End flashback*~  
  
"For homework, write a six inch report on Higorash, the Gnome, and how he lead his troops to a victory over the German elves. Dismissed." Harry quickly scribbled down his assignment and hurriedly packed his things. He looked around, hoping that no one had seen him zoning. His eyes locked with Hermione's for a moment. She had seen him. He just hoped she didn't suspect anything.  
  
Out in the hall way, a bunch of 3rd year Hufflepuff girls started screaming. Peeves and the trouble twins (Fred and George) had gotten into a competition: who could set off the most dungbombs before getting caught. Peeves caught sight of Harry and grinned.  
  
"Hey Potter, you're ugly, but what can you do? You really ought to be locked up in a zoo! If you looked in a mirror, it surely would crack! At least you look better than Sirius Black!" he chanted. He cackled and flew off.  
  
Harry had gotten used to that saying. The Slytherins used it whenever they could. Infact, they had overused it. It had lost its sting by this point.  
  
The fact was, Harry truly did feel ugly The summer had not been kind to him. He was 5'3". His skin was extremely pale; it stretched like thin plastic over his well defined bones. He had cuts and bruises on his arms, legs, stomach, and back (courtesy of Vernon). He wore baggy, long clothes to keep them covered though.  
  
Ron chose this moment in Harry's musings to clap him on the shoulder, over a particularly deep gash. Harry winced, but quickly turned it into a smile. He was going to need to be more careful.  
  
"Stupid Peeves. That jingle of his is really getting old anyway. And don't mind the Slytherins. They're just trying to earn points, since they ARE Jr. Death Eaters."  
  
Harry smiled his thanks. "We better get going. Divination's next. I need to find out how I'm gong to die today!"  
  
Ron grinned. "You remember last class? 'And he will walk to the top of the highest tower, a rope in his hand. He will contemplate his existence as he ties the noose around his neck. Then, he will jump. Falling. Falling.Falling. He will look at the world as he falls, knowing he will never see it again. Then, with an unearthly 'crack', his life will die with the setting sun. His limbs with blow in the wind, uselessly. He will be *dramatic pause* no more.'" With this said, Ron dissolved into fake, hysterical crying. "Here lies the Hairy Potter. dunno really why we miss him though."  
  
Harry playfull punched Ron on the shoulder. On the inside, he wondered if anyone really would miss him.  
  
A forlorn trill, Lost in the night, As gold and crimson, Takes its flight.  
  
Gentle eyes, Cry pearly tears, Its song brings hope, Or strikes in fear.  
  
Forgotten Phoenix, It's your turn. Ascend to the heavens, Or you shall burn.  
  
Forgotten Phoenix: written by Mars Raven (me) So no copying! It's copywrited. That was part one of it, by the way.  
  
  
  
A/N: There will be lots of Harry torture in this fic. no slash, and probably no (or not much) romance. Sirius will play a big role. Snape might too. Please R/R, and be nice! 


	2. Tears and Tunes

~*Flashback*~  
  
"You can't stop me," Harry said, confidently, "If you try to stop me, my Godfather will come for me! All I'd need to do is write to him!" Harry suddenly felt confused and slightly alarmed when Vernon's grin got wider, accompanied with an insane sounding laugh. Harry didn't have long to wonder why, though. Vernon reached into his pocket and handed Harry a parchment.  
  
Harry found that the parchment was an envelope with his name printed on it. He carefully tore it open and pulled out a letter inside.  
  
Harry,  
  
I'm so sorry, but I'm writing to tell you that we can't keep in contact during the summer. There's a lot of dark activity going on, and exchanging letters would endanger both of us. It's completely tearing me up; I argued long and hard with Dumbledor, but he strictly said no. Just remember I love you, and I'll see you as soon as I can. Hang in there, it's going to turn out ok.  
  
Always in Trouble, Snuffles, Padfoot, Sirius  
  
PS. Moony here wanted me to let him say hi here, and to take care. Worried prat. . .  
  
At first Harry was slightly confused and disappointed. He wouldn't be able to speak with Sirius or Remus, but why did that make his uncle so happy? He decided to ask that question aloud to his uncle.  
  
Vernon laughed again, now looking fully insane. "You see, boy, now that you can't write to that bloody murdering Godfather of yours, there's nothing to stop me from punishing you properly!"  
  
Harry felt the color drain from his cheeks as the full meaning of his uncle's words sank in. His uncle could hurt him, and he'd have no way of calling out for help. . .  
  
~*End Flashback*~  
  
"MR. POTTER!" Harry snapped awake and was greeted by the ugly mug of his potion's professor, Professor Snape. He looked extremely pissed off, and Harry decided it'd be best to attempt to pay attention for the rest of class.  
  
"Now that Mr. Potter has kindly decided to grace us with his attention," he paused to allow the Slytherins to chortle, "can someone tell me what the name of the potion is, what the effects of it are, and what the risks of brewing it are?" He purposely ignored Hermione's frantically waving hand. "Anyone?" He sighed in defeat. "Ms. Granger?"  
  
"The Geedorlite potion has the simple purpose of removing poison, inflicted by magical creatures, from the system. The only risk in making the potion is to count how many Erumpent horns to add in. They will explode if more than three is added to a potion. Erumpent horns are class B tradable since they are dangerous and subject to strict control, not to mention since it is difficult to approach an Erumpent to-"  
  
"That will do, Ms. Granger," Snape barked. "Now then. You are to follow these instructions on the board CAREFULLY while mixing this potion. No more than three Erumpent horns may be added. Afterwards, stir until it is a navy blue. Then I will come to test it." With that said, Snape started putting people into partners. Harry was paired with Neville.  
  
"Don't worry, Neville. Just concentrate and don't panic, and we'll get this done in no time."  
  
"But-but-but Harry! I-I-I don't know if I c-ca-can do this right without S- Sn-Snape getting all mad at me!" Neville was already in hysterics, and they had only started making the water boil.  
  
*Just relax* Harry nearly yelped in surprise at what came out of his mouth. Though he was sure he had said those words, they sounded. . . strange. Sort of quivery, yet sing songy. It was a sound he had heard somewhere before, but he couldn't quite place it. It was also strange how it effected Neville. He had stopped shaking and was confidently adding the Toad Stone to the African Powers weed. Harry blinked in surprise, but didn't argue his good fortune.  
  
Half an hour later, he was quite surprised to find that Neville hadn't messed up anything yet. Unfortunately, good things never last long. Neville had just added the third Erumpent horn to the concoction, when Draco called out across the room.  
  
"Hey, Potter! Catch!" He threw an Erumpent horn that missed Harry's head, yet landed in the potion. With an enormous 'bang!', the potion erupted. Screams echoed around the dungeon room, and Harry creaked open one of his eyes. The floor and desks were covered with green goop, and four people were on the floor, shrieking. They were badly burned, second and third degree burns. Girls were screaming, while guys tried not to vomit. Malfoy looked horrified, and tried to slink away unnoticed.  
  
Snape was in something akin to panic, for the first time unsure of what to do. Harry looked down at his potion covered robes and found that the fiery substance hadn't left a mark. Curious though this was, he knew he'd have time to ponder it later.  
  
Harry started walking to the closest victim, as if pulled by an unseen force, and he knelt infront of her. Before he could even figure out what was happening, pearly white tears rolled down his cheeks and started landing on her face. A few seconds later, not a trace of the burn was left. Still being controlled by this unseen force, Harry left the gaping Slytherin's side and approached a Gryffindor girl who he wasn't too familiar with. The process repeated itself, and he continued the process until it ended with the final victim, Neville. When he stood, finished, the entire class was silently watching him, unsure of what had just happened. Some had expressions of fear, others of wonder and curiosity, and others, just plain amazement.  
  
Harry wiped the residue of the tears off his cheeks, catching the glinting pearliness. Once again, it seemed strangely familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. Snape had started gesturing and trying word something, and after a few seconds of fruitless effort, managed to say "Seats. . . now. . ." The class quickly obeyed, and Ron awkwardly sat next to Harry while Hermione wouldn't stop gaping at him.  
  
"That was quite. . . interesting, Mr. Potter," Snape finally managed, attempting to rebuild his stoic mask. "Might I ask what that was, exactly?"  
  
*I'm not sure, sir* Harry tried to answer, but once again, it came out as something more of a song. He blanched, in panic. All the Gryffindors seemed soothed by his words, while the Slytherins had a look of pure terror on each of their faces. Harry swallowed and made another attempt. "I'm not sure, sir." He sighed in relief that it had come out right.  
  
"I think I'm going to call the headmaster. . ." Snape muttered, and he briskly left the room. Harry groaned and put his head in his hands. Now what had he done?  
  
~*Dumbledor's office*~  
  
"Is that so Severus? I had a feeling that it would show itself soon. . ."  
  
"Sir? I'm afraid that I don't know what you're talking about."  
  
"Ms. Granger was in my office the other day and expressed concern for Mr. Potter. I believe that I have found enough evidence, though we still would need witnesses, to prove that Mr. Potter was abused over the summer."  
  
Snape's jaw went slack for a moment, and he struggled to find his voice. "Headmaster. . . I mean. . . are you certain?"  
  
"I'm afraid so. You see, Ms. Granger has noticed some strange changes in Harry's behavior, and what you described definitely fits the abuse theory. Professor, perhaps it's time I told you why Voldemort wanted Harry dead, and what's happening to Harry as we speak? Yes, I believe so. . . Come to my office at three o'clock, and we can discuss it over tea."  
  
Snape nodded, still confused, and left Dumbledor's fireplace. Dumbledor sighed and ran his fingers through his long white hair, knowing that after today, Voldemort would only double his efforts at catching Harry.  
  
Author's Notes: Sooooooo sorry that took so long! I wrote this fic while I had the flu and a temperature of 102. When I was better, and I re read chapter 1, I was like "Huh? What was I going to do with this again?" It took me a while, but I finally remembered, so I should be updating more now. Anyway, the next chapter (which I already have written) will explain what's going on with Harry and it'll set up the rest of the fic. Now, thanks goes out to:  
  
BunnyGirl- Snape's gonna find out some new stuff in the next chapter from Dumbledor, so be sure to check back to find out what it is!  
  
Emmasj- I used to hate Harry abuse fics too, but for some reason they're slightly addictive. . . *shrugs* Anyway, I'll keep writing!  
  
Ash muse- Yep, Harry's started crying. Malfoy's gonna have fun with that. . . Yes, I did make up the gibbering spell, however the chant from Peeves, mostly, comes from the Harry Potter game. "Hey Potter, you're ugly, but what can you do? I'm Peeves, Potter, so you better not mess with me! If you looked in a mirror, it surely would crack! You really ought to be locked up in a zoo!" is Peeve's chant in the game, so I changed it so it would make more sense, and rhyme.  
  
Deity- Yeah, Snape's gonna have a main role in this fic. Sirius too. I'm just not sure yet how big of a role. Heh.  
  
Artemis Fire Mage of Golin- Thanks, chapter three is ready, I'll post it soon.  
  
'insert blank space'- I'm assuming Ron is over 6 feet, and Hermoine is probably between 5'3" to 5'5" or 6. I'm not to sure. All in all, Harry's just supposed to be extremely short and ill.  
  
RJLL- I'm glad you're ok with the poem. It actually describes the plot of the story, though in symbolism. It'll apply to the entire fic once it's finished.  
  
Moonlight- there will be more Harry torture in this, probably some Sirius and Snape appearances (no, not slash). Even though I didn't show the conversation, Hermione did talk to Dumbledor, and in the next chapter, Dumbledor's gonna say a lot of important stuff.  
  
Ice- I appreciate the fact that you gave constructive criticism rather than just a flame. I understand what you're saying, however I did say that chapter one was essential for setting up the story. It didn't have much to do with the over all events, yet it was necessary for setting up Harry's character and the mood of it.  
  
Hermione HP- Chapter three is typed up, I'll post it up when I feel the time's right ;)  
  
psychochick- heh, naturally Fudge wouldn't admit Voldemort's back. Lethifolds it must be, in his opinion. Nasty things, Lethifolds are. . . anyway, thanks for the encouragement, and we'll see what Fudge's roll is in this later.  
  
Griffin- I like the name. . . Griffins are one of my favorite mythological creatures.  
  
Kylie- Thanks, I like being different. As you can see, his tears first came into play in this chapter. There will be a lot more in the future, just not from grief.  
  
Arizosa- Thanks! ^_^ I write to please, so I'm glad to see this is fulfilling its purpose.  
  
Kami Potter- I'm sorry, I'm a sadistic writer. It'll get even more depressing, so all those angst and drama haters shouldn't read this, heh.  
  
TheOnlyEvilOne- Eating fire sounds painful. . . I think I better start writing more.  
  
FawkesnFlame- I'll post more soon, no worries. I like your name, it's cool!  
  
Iggie- I've been reading your fic, and all I can say is OH MY GOSH! It is so good! I'll review when I finish it but. . . eep! It's so gotta go under my favs list! You are a genius!  
  
Perc Mad Hatter- Sorry, I'm upset with my first fic and I really hate writing it. . . my sorries. Also, this isn't a continuation of it. I just mentioned it with the last update to say 'hey, this one sucks try reading this one'. I might take down Six Phoenixies, edit it, post it again, then make a sequel. I'm not sure though. . .  
  
Ashes- thanks for the praise! It's definitely nice to receive encouragement. Next chapter will be up soon!  
  
That's all for now, check again for chapter three! 


	3. Truths and Tea

~*Dumbledor's Office*~  
  
Snape took a seat in front of Dumbledor's desk, as usual, waiting for the Headmaster to arrive. Minister Fudge had paid a visit to Dumbledor again, and as usual the two were arguing. It had been muffled before, but Snape could hear tidbits of the conversation now.  
  
"It would be best for him, and the rest of the wizarding world, if he was placed in St. Mungo's where he could receive psychiatric treatment-"  
  
"Mr. Potter does NOT need treatment of any sort! Voldemort is back, and I'm quite certain that Harry was severely mistreated over the summer-"  
  
"Most likely another one of his fairy tales to try to earn sympathy!"  
  
"He has been completely honest with us this whole time; you merely are blind to the truth! You don't want to believe that your perfect little world-"  
  
"You are the blind one, Dumbledor! Admit it! You're getting old! Perhaps I should try to have YOU placed in St. Mungo's as well!"  
  
Snape sighed and rubbed his head. The fool that called himself their Minister could be quite frustrating at times indeed.  
  
Five minutes later, a tired looking Dumbledor came through the door, followed by a black blur that seemed eager to leave.  
  
"I take it you heard parts of our. . . conversation, Severus?"  
  
"Indeed."  
  
Dumbledor sighed. "If you wish, I will explain at some other time what has been going on. But for now, I believe I called you here concerning Mr. Potter? Right.  
  
"I will be blunt with you to begin with. Harry is one of the few people to receive a very strange, yet wonderful gift. He is a Magical Animagus, meaning that his Animagus form is that of a magical creature. The reason why it is so rare is because of this: The first Magical Animagus' used strong potions, ones that aren't even in existence anymore, to obtain their forms. The genetic code for this transformation is passed from family member to family member after that."  
  
"Sir, wouldn't have James Potter been a Magical Animagus then, rather than a stag?"  
  
"I'm afraid not, Severus. You see, the only way that the family members can obtain this transformation is if one of them is born on the exact same day the first one to make the potion was.  
  
"In 1345, Alexander Potter was the first of the Potter line to attempt the potion. He succeeded, and he was the only recorded wizard to have the ability to turn into a Phoenix. This ability was passed down through the generations, yet none of his descendants received the power. This is because Alexander Potter was born on July 31, 1295. Mr. Harry Potter is the first of his family, after Alexander Potter, to be born on July 31st. Therefore, the power of the Phoenix transformation goes to him."  
  
Dumbledor paused a moment to allow Snape to get over his shock. Harry could transform into a Phoenix? He hadn't really seen that coming.  
  
"If I may ask, sir, how does this prove that Potter was abused over the summer?"  
  
Dumbledor took a sip of tea before continuing in his explanation. "When I was a student here at Hogwarts, there was a girl in my class named Elise Dore. She was a shy student, rather anti social. Her father, Tray Dore, who later would betray the light side in favor of the dark, abused her. None of us knew that at the time, of course. Well, as fate would have it, she was a member of a family line that possessed the ability to turn into a Unicorn. Her early ancestor, Marcus Dore who was born on April 5th, 1325, succeeded in making the potion as well. As fate would have it, Elise was born on April 5th as well. In her fifth year, her father's abuse got worse, and when she came to school that year, she had this huge zit on her forehead."  
  
Snape practically choked on his tea and sent a disbelieving look towards Dumbledor. ::Perhaps he SHOULD spend some time in St. Mungo's. . .:: "Sir, what does a zit have to do with anything?"  
  
"Patience, Severus. Now, this poor girl she got teased about that zit constantly. It only seemed to get bigger! Eventually, it looked like two zits on top of one another." Snape was fighting not to choke on his tea again. "Well, other weird things started happening to her. Her hair started growing lighter in color, not to mention it became silkier. She became thinner, and more graceful, and she seemed to always be calm and collected. That zit on her head kept growing until it became apparent that it was no zit; it was a horn. Finally, some doctors realized what was happening and managed to treat her before she turned into a unicorn, permanently. Ever since that happened, she had the ability to transform into a unicorn at will too. I lost contact with her when I was about 40 years old though. It's really too bad, she was a wonderful kisser. . ." This time, Snape did choke on his tea and Dumbledor paused to allow him to finish his coughing fit.  
  
"So, you're saying that since Potter was abused, he's actually turning into a Phoenix?"  
  
"Correct."  
  
"And, if he doesn't receive treatment, he will remain a Phoenix?"  
  
"Yes. That is why I'm going to ask you to do a favor for me."  
  
"Oh no. . ."  
  
"I would like to ask you to brew the proper potion to counteract that effects, if you would. I'll bring you the list of ingredients; I have the utmost confidence in you."  
  
Snape nodded in resignation and was about to leave when he froze for a moment and turned back around.  
  
"Headmaster, why would Voldemort want Potter dead then?"  
  
Dumbledor's face grew solemn. "He knew about the Phoenix form that Harry would acquire. You see, once Harry is in his Phoenix form, he will be invincible. Phoenixes never die, they just burn and are born again. If Harry was to fight Voldemort, as a Phoenix, Voldemort would be doomed. When Voldemort appeared at the Potters', his main goal was to destroy Harry to prevent him from ever transforming into a Phoenix. First, he decided to destroy James. He did this to ensure that James would never have another child that could be born July 31. He didn't care what happened to Lily, but when she refused to move away from Harry, she was murdered. When he attempted to murder Harry, two things stopped him. One was Lily's love for Harry. That's what caused to curse to rebound and hit Voldemort. Second, it was Harry's inability to die."  
  
"So, Potter is immune to the Avada Kedevra?"  
  
"Yes, along with the Imperius curse. Phoenixes have a strong will; they can not be controlled."  
  
"If everything you're saying is true, then Potter must also have the power of Phoenix tears. Yes, he does actually, I saw him use them earlier in class today. If he has the ability to heal, why did he not use them on himself over the summer to heal his own wounds?"  
  
"I'm afraid that is part of the curse of being a Phoenix. Phoenixes are self sacrificial. They will use their healing powers on everyone, except themselves." Snape bowed his head for a moment, letting everything he learned sink in. Finally he opened the door, thanked the Headmaster, and left. Dumbledor sat back down, and started looking for his list of ingredients. It would take a lot of work to keep Harry safe from Voldemort's grasp, not to mention Minister Fudge's.  
  
  
  
"Harry, that was kind of freaky you know," Ron said, stubbornly. "I mean, who just cries and heals people? It's crazy!"  
  
"I have to admit, Harry, I've never head or read about anything like that before."  
  
"I told you guys about a million times, I have no idea what happened! It just. . . happened. I can't explain it." Ron and Hermione shrugged, and went back to their food. Harry merely picked at his meal, still quite disturbed by the earlier events of the day.  
  
*Please pass the salt,* he tried to say, but it came out as a song. He received even more strange looks before he decided to give up and return to his room.  
  
Author's Notes: It's thank you time. . .  
  
Iggie: Lol, I tend to usually have long author's notes sections. This one actually will be short. Sorta.  
  
Gabriella: Yep, Harry's tune is a Phoenix tune  
  
GryffindorGurl987: Thanks for the review! I hope you got my e-mail!  
  
Crydwyn: Thanks, I just hope I can stick to my original plot idea.  
  
Ariel: I feel special now ^_^ Chapter four should be up soon  
  
Kathleen: hehe, got the hint hint, so here's the chapter!  
  
RJLL: Sorry about the cliffhanger, I hope this chapter explained everything for you!  
  
Atawalpa: Did you get my e-mail? If you didn't, I gave you the go ahead for Dying Angel. Lemmie know when chapter one's up!  
  
S.C. Hardy: Thaaaaaaaaaaank you  
  
Arizosa: lol, I'm glad you like the Harry as a Phoenix idea!  
  
Ms. Prongs: I read the first part of Dying Angel, and I loved it! New chapter soon please! It was very very very good!!!! And don't worry, I like what you've done with it! You remained faithful to the challenge, lol.  
  
tima: lol, do you mean you'd like to write 2 or 5? If so, lemmie know!  
  
Unknown(even to me: I'm sorry, here's the update you asked for.  
  
AoM: Yeah, Dying Angel was my favorite of my challenges, I think. 


	4. Fears and Feathers

Harry sighed when he woke up, feeling extremely tired and sore for some reason. He sat up to stretch his unusually stiff muscles and looked over at Ron to see if he was awake yet. Not surprisingly, the young Weasley was still sprawled out on his bed in an untidy heap, snoring loudly.  
  
*Ron, wake up, it's time for breakfast.* Harry nearly smacked himself when he remembered what happened the day before. He had hoped that the weird voice thing would go away over night, but for him it was no such luck. Wishing to ponder over the strangeness of the events at another time, he decided to take a shower.  
  
While in the shower, Harry noticed something peculiar. As he was washing his hair, he noticed his normally difficult and messy hair was even more so this morning. No matter how much shampoo he used, and no mater how much he tried to brush through his hair, it remained together in clumps on his head, refusing to be parted. After about thirty minutes of fruitless scrubbing, he decided to throw in the towel and give up. He wrapped a towel around his body and stood in front of the mirror to brush his teeth. The yell that he emitted only seconds after, was loud enough to wake every living creature within the school.  
  
"Bloody hell, Harry! What in the name of Godric's hair was that abou- OH MY FREAKING MERLIN!" Ron stood frozen in the doorway, his mouth gaping.  
  
"Ron. . . what the heck is going on with me!?" Harry half whimpered, half yelled. He didn't even pay much attention to the fact that his voice sounded normal at the moment. He and Ron were a bit to preoccupied with the state of Harry's hair.  
  
Blinking to make sure he wasn't seeing things, Ron cautiously stepped forward toward Harry. "Harry, are those. . . feathers?" Indeed, on top of Harry's head, instead of the normal messy black hair, were brilliant red feathers, streaked with gold and black. Harry, still in a state of shock, was poking and touching them, as if to make sure they were real.  
  
"Yes, Ron," he choked out. "These would be feathers."  
  
Ron tentatively reached up and touched the mass of feathers. A grin broke out on his face. "You know, Harry, those are pretty soft. If you find a girl to snog with, I bet she'd love them!" Harry shot Ron a venomous look, but was distracted by the sounds of more footsteps. The shout had woken up all the other boys and they had decided, like Ron, to investigate for the source of the shout. Dean was the first one to enter the room.  
  
"Merlin's teeth! Harry's got feathers on his head!" He shouted. The other boys quickly gathered around to gawk like Ron.  
  
"Harry, what happened?" Fred and George exclaimed, though they didn't look at all frightened, scared, or astonished by it. Harry was willing to bet it had given them an idea for a new prank.  
  
"You'd probably know!" Ron retorted. "I bet you two did this!"  
  
"We didn't do it this time!" Fred defended.  
  
"Though, it is good material for future tricks. . ." George added. Ron snorted and rolled his eyes.  
  
"Eeep!" All the guys turned to look at the doorway, where a frightened squeak had been heard. Many of the Gryffindor girls had cautiously made their way to the boy's bathroom to seek out the originator of the scream, and stood frozen in the doorway. Many of them were blushing due to Harry's lack of clothing, but all were gawking at his feathered head. Well, almost all. Hermione was staring in horror at Harry's chest and stomach.  
  
"Merlin. . ." she breathed. She slowly came toward Harry, and with dawning horror, Harry realized what she had seen. The scars, cuts, and bruises that marred and crisscrossed over his body had been overlooked by everyone else, but not by Hermione's careful eye. He quickly grabbed a towel to cover the rest of himself before anyone else could see the damage.  
  
::I'm in trouble now. . .::  
  
  
  
Snape sighed as he looked at the list of ingredients for the near impossible to brew potion. It'd take a miracle for him to be able to brew the whole thing before the summer holidays. He looked over it again to get an idea of where he'd need to go to get such items.  
  
1. ¾ cup of well ground unicorn horn  
  
2. 2 cups dragon blood  
  
3. ¼ cup of flobberworm mucus  
  
4. 4 shreds of wiggintree bark  
  
5. 8 sets of dragon heartstring  
  
6. 1 dragon tooth  
  
7. 1 basilisk fang (devoid of the poison)  
  
8. 40mL of phoenix tears  
  
9. 5 erumpant horns  
  
10. 6 acromantula eyes  
  
11. the ashes of a freshly burned phoenix  
  
12. material from the subject  
  
Most of these ingredients were class A non tradable, not to mention illegal. The flobberworm mucus and wiggintree bark would be easy, but the other items, most of the really, would be near to impossible to obtain.  
  
::Damn you, Albus,:: Snape complained within his mind. Deciding to give up on the impossible potion for the moment, he grudgingly stalked out of the dungeons to attend breakfast.  
  
  
  
Harry uncomfortably looked down at his lap. He was sitting in the common room with Ron and Hermione, while everyone else went about their business. Some people had gotten over the shock already, while others still openly stared. Hermione kept giving Harry looks that clearly meant she wished to tell someone about the damage she saw. Harry returned with stubborn glares.  
  
*Oh no, how will I hide this?* he suddenly said.  
  
"Uh. . . what?" Ron asked, confused. Harry sighed and tried again.  
  
"How will I hide this? Everyone's bound to notice. . ."  
  
"Just keep your hood up," Hermione suggested. "No one's going to notice. Don't you worry." Harry nodded, still worried none the less. Not only was he concerned about his hair, but he was also worrying over whether anyone else saw his scars and cuts or not.  
  
Deciding not to dwell on it, he drew up his hood and walked toward the Great Hall with his friends. Everything was going without a hitch in it, until Malfoy decided to ruin it.  
  
"Hiding your ugly face, eh Potter?" he jeered. "What's wrong with you this time?" Before Harry or anyone could react, Malfoy knocked the hood way. Silence filled the Great Hall as everyone stared. Even Malfoy seemed surprised beyond words.  
  
::Good Merlin alive, it's happened,:: Snape thought. A quick glance at Dumbledore confirmed this. When they looked back to where Harry had been sitting, he had already bolted from the room. Albus motioned for Severus to meet him outside the Great Hall.  
  
Once they were there, Severus quickly turned to Dumbledore.  
  
"Headmaster, I had no idea the changes would be so quick or noticeable," he hissed. "If it gets much worse, it'll be all over the front pages of the Daily Prophet!"  
  
"I am aware of that, Severus. The only thing we can do is try to have that potion ready. And soon."  
  
"How long do we have before he transforms completely?"  
  
"I am not sure, for this is a very rare occurrence. Based on what I've seen, though, I must say we can't have an extreme amount of time. How long will that potion take to be made and brewed?"  
  
" I believe about eight months."  
  
"And it's the beginning of October. So, you're saying May then? Hopefully it'll be ready in time." Dumbledore trailed off and looked thoughtful for a moment. "We'll need to keep an extra close eye on Harry. If Voldemort got him. . ." he closed his eyes and sighed. Snape's expression grew to one of confusion.  
  
"Headmaster, if what you said is true, that Harry can't die, then why would we need to worry?"  
  
"First of all, after Harry takes the potion, he will be able to die. Before the age of fifteen, the Phoenix and human are one unit, therefore, the human can not die. But after the person has mastered transforming back and fourth between the two separate bodies, then that person may die while in human form, just not in Phoenix form. If Voldemort captures Harry before he drinks the potion, he could torture Harry beyond the point of sanity. If he captured Harry after he took the potion, either Voldemort would kill Harry, or if Harry learned how to use his powers properly, he may kill Voldemort." Dumbledore sighed in frustration as Snape nodded in understanding. Either way, it wouldn't be pretty for Harry. Snape had to agree, though, that being tortured to the point of insanity sounded worse than death itself.  
  
"How will Potter be protected until the potion is ready?"  
  
"I do believe a certain animagus would be more than pleased to assist with that," Dumbledore answered, a twinkle glinting in his eye.  
  
"No. . . Albus, you can't be saying that! Please!"  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "I believe it is time we contacted Mr. Black."  
  
Author's Note: Next chapter, more changes with Harry, and Sirius enters the picture. This wasn't my longest or best chapter, but I had five minutes to write it, so it should do until the next update. Ok, thanks to the reviewers: Ms. Prongs: I've checked out the challenge you took up, and I love it! I really hope you update it soon!  
  
Queen of the Fairies: Thanks! Harry's gonna get more torture coming in the future, but I don't like angst stories with a horrible ending, so it shouldn't bee too bad for him.  
  
Elektra Joradees Gamblin: Will do, will do.  
  
Iggie: No kidding, heh. Ooo, I see you've updated so I'm gonna finish this up quick so I can go read yours!  
  
kandra: I hope the explanation wasn't too confusing; took me a little bit to decide on how I was going to word it. As for Harry's animagus form, it wouldn't be a true Harry Potter fic if Voldemort wasn't there is some way or form, so you'll see what happens between Harry and Moldywart Voldepoo.  
  
Saukara Snape: I felt guilty because I couldn't remember if I had emailed you or not! *cries* In case I didn't, which for that I'm immensely sorry, sure, you can take up any of the challenges you want. Incase I didn't e- mail you, I'll e-mail you soon incase you didn't see this posted. Sorry again!  
  
Autumn Dreams: Oooo, you must be a mind reader. You nearly hit the mark with Alexander Potter. You'll just hafta see how it comes out in the end though ^_~  
  
moon-dragon: I might do #5 myself one I finish up my three current ones. Usually I post my ideas with no intention of doing them myself, and originally To Cry and Tom Riddle Lives were challenges, but then I decided to do them myself, heh.  
  
Gryffindorgurl987: No problem with the e-mailing thing. Hopefully you'll receive the email about this chapter too. Thanks for reviewing, reviews are always good motivation to write ^_^  
  
Kathleen: You'll see about Alexander Potter later in the fic, he actually does play something of a role. It will be explained later how it is possible for a Phoenix to die as well, and you'll see what Harry decides to do about the whole thing.  
  
TheOnlyEvilOne: I'm not a fan of yugioh, but I'll read it if you like. Thanks for the compliment, and new chapters should be on their way.  
  
Ashes: Thanks, and feel free to have a go at number five or any of the others if you like. I'm considering trying number five myself once I've finished with the my current fics, though I still need to think it over first.  
  
tima: Ok, I've already asked this a few times but, do you mean you'd like to write two or five?  
  
Gabriella: lol, I'm glad you liked Dumbledore's part in the last chapter. Hey, he's human right? He has the right to an opinion.  
  
Jarvey: Sorry that this is a short update, but no worries. Longer better chapters are on the way! 


	5. Meetings and Moping

Dumbledore surveyed the faces in his office. Tonight was the night of the first meeting of the Underground. The volunteers from the ministry, such as Arthur Weasley, and other supportive wizards, such as Moody and Mrs. Figg, were all assembled to discuss the dark movement. Dumbledore sat in the head chair with McGonagall and Snape on either side of him.  
  
"Welcome everyone, I am pleased to see your faces here. First order of business is to-" Dumbledore stopped talking immediately when the door crashed open. Sirius Black and Remus Lupin hurried in, both of them panting.  
  
"Sorry we're late, Professor," Remus grinned, "Sirius saw a cat on the way here." Sirius' face turned slightly red, but he didn't deny it.  
  
Dumbledore simply chuckled in amusement. "Quite alright you two, I know that it can be difficult to fight the instincts of our inherited forms," Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he said that glanced a knowing look toward Sirius. "Now, why don't you two take those two chairs over there? The ones by Severus?" All three men groaned in disgust, but knew it would be useless to argue.  
  
"Now then, the first order of business is to discuss the problem at hand. I'm sure you all are aware of the problem with Mr. Harry Potter, after the owls I sent you?" The rooms occupants nodded briefly. "Very good. Now, Remus, I have asked you back here because I trust you the most as far as potential Dark Arts professors go. As you know, we're going to need as much security for Mr. Potter now that his situation has worsened. Will you resume your job as a teacher here and help keep an eye on him?"  
  
"If you feel that is best sir. . . but what about the student's parents? Won't they be upset about having a werewolf teaching their children?"  
  
Dumbledore smiled, "Do not worry Remus, I have owled many parents and nearly all of them agree that they'd rather have a kind hearted, trustworthy, werewolf teaching their children rather than a stranger who could be from Voldemort." Remus smiled and relaxed slightly.  
  
"Sirius, I have asked you here for two purposes. One of them is that I must ask you to stay in your canine form and accompany Harry. I'm certain he would love the company, and if you notice any drastic or sudden changes in him, other than what I've described, then please report it immediately."  
  
"My pleasure!" Sirius said, grinning. He couldn't wait to be able to spend time with his Godson again.  
  
"Very good, now, secondly I have asked you here because I want you to assist Severus in brewing the potion." He sat back and smiled at the two of them.  
  
Both men looked shocked for a moment before saying "I don't know anything about potions!" and "He doesn't know anything about potions!" at the same time.  
  
"True though that may be, Sirius does know enough about the potion being brewed to be of help. After all, he did need to take the potion himself in his youth." At those words, Snape shot a baffled look toward Sirius, along with many of the others in the room.  
  
Sirius gave them all an annoyed look. "In case you didn't notice, I DO happen to turn into a grim. That IS a magical creature, is it not?" Everyone sort of looked at him strangely for a few more moments before they shrugged it off, not wanting to bother the annoyed man for the full story.  
  
"Very well then, it is agreed," Dumbledore said. "Now, secondly we can not go around forever merely calling ourselves 'The Underground'. That will bring about even more suspicion from the Ministry. We need a code name of some sort to call ourselves so that when we are in public, it would not sound too suspicious."  
  
"The Above Ground?" Snape sneered, sarcastically. Everyone ignored him.  
  
"How about something to do with a Phoenix since Harry is, right now, the main concern," Mrs. Figg suggested.  
  
"How about the Plight of the Phoenix?" Remus suggested.  
  
"That sounds like the name of a poem," Snape snarled.  
  
"I haven't heard you come up with something better, Snape, unless you want us to be called the Greasy Haired Bastards Association!"  
  
"How about the Phoenix Cry?" Minerva suggested, ignoring the bickering.  
  
"I got it, how about the Order of the Phoenix!" Everyone turned to Moody and nodded their agreement.  
  
  
  
The Death Eaters trembled as their enraged master paced around the room.  
  
"You idiots!" he hissed at them, "Why was I not informed sooner of his transformations?! Do you not have children who attend that school?!"  
  
"Master," Lucius bravely, yet stupidly, spoke up, "it only became apparent yesterday. Even if my son sent an owl straight away, it wouldn't have reached here until-"  
  
"SILENCE!" Lucius quickly clamped his jaw shut. "This time, none of you will mess up. Harry Potter must be kidnapped and done away with before he takes that potion and before he transforms. I want his blood to be spilt on these floors before the end of his school year! Now leave me be!" The Death Eaters quickly left the room, grateful that their master had dismissed them before he got even angrier.  
  
Voldemort walked back to his throne, but paused when he saw the title of one of his books on the shelf. He approached it and pulled it down, the title reading "Phoenixes: History, Uses, Power, And Control". Voldemort's eyes widened at the last part. Control. . . perhaps he could control Harry Potter. He quickly opened the book and began to read.  
  
  
  
"Harry? Harry, you need to come out some time!" Ron tried coaxing. Harry had gone back to the dorm room and pulled the curtains around his bed after the incident at breakfast. He hadn't come out since.  
  
Rumors were already spreading like wildfire around the castle. Some would say that he could heal others by crying on them, yet others said that his voice was more soothing than any calming charm or potion. Some claimed they saw red, gold, and black feathers on his head, and some even went so far as to say he could fly.  
  
Many students had approached Ron, Hermione, and some of the Gryffindors demanding to know the truth, but they had all remained tight lipped, unwilling to reveal any information without Harry's consent.  
  
"Harry, look, people are going to have questions, but they'll get over it," Ron said, desperately. It was not like Harry to hide in his bed, hoping his problems would just disappear. "I mean, sure, I haven't ever heard of this happening in the past, but there's got to be a reason, right? We can go to Dumbledore, he'll know what's going on!" Ron sighed when once again he received no answer. "That's it, Harry, I mean it!" He grabbed the curtain on Harry's bed and yanked it back, only to be met with an empty bed. Ron blushed and looked to the left and right, hoping no one else had seen him talking to thin air.  
  
::Where could he be? I didn't think he left the room.:: Struck with a good idea, Ron pulled the Marauder's Map from Harry's trunk and softly muttered the password. When the map came up, he scanned it carefully for Harry. He found Harry's name on the map, and according to the map he was. . . standing right behind Ron. Ron whirled around, blinked, and saw no one. ::Stupid thing must be broken.:: Suddenly, Ron smacked himself on the forehead, turned back around, and reached out into the air. He pulled down the hood of, a now smirking Harry's, invisibility cloak.  
  
"Very funny, Harry. Where were you?" Ron scolded.  
  
"Library," Harry said, as he shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.  
  
"That sounds like how Hermione would spend her day. . . what were you doing there?"  
  
Harry simply handed Ron a book and went to his own bed to start working on homework. Ron glanced at the title (The Gift and Curse of Magical Morphing) and started reading. He felt himself growing pale as he read the third paragraph.  
  
~When left to it's own natural way of occurring, Magical Animagism will begin when the subject is twenty years old. The subject will have a small tattoo on his/her right arm of the creature he/she will become. When that tattoo appears, that person may take the Morphia Chalengium potion to become that creature permanently. Unfortunately, not all people have been left to the natural cycle. Some people, starting from thirteen years as the youngest age, are forced to start changing due to physical abuse. Those who are abused will change earlier than they are supposed to, without the potion, as a way of self defense. The creature inside will attempt to come out to defend their human half. If the Morphia Chalengium potion, along with the Counter act potion, are not brewed and mixed in time and given to the subject, that person will lose their human half forever and remain the magical creature that they have become.  
  
Werewolves are one of earliest cases of Magical Animagism. . .~  
  
Ron's head shot up as he was about to say something to Harry, but he held his tongue as he found that his friend was fast asleep.  
  
  
  
  
  
Author Notes: Ick, this fic is really starting to suck. . . my deepest apologies. I'll try to make it better, I really will.  
  
I have some bad news for reviewers. For some reason, many of the names of the reviewers have become Xing@fanfiction.net. I don't know why this is, and I KNOW that that's not what the original names were. Unfortunately, I can not give thank you's since I do not know who the xings are. So, I'll answer questions. I'm very sorry again, and please keep reviewing, for I will acknowledge you asap.  
  
1. What is the long term plot for this?  
  
1. Basically, we follow Harry along with his changes to see what the new transformation will bring. At the same time, Voldemort is coming up with a way to control Harry against his will. There could be several endings, for example, Harry could beat Voldemort, Harry could be trapped as a Phoenix, Harry could be controlled by Voldemort, Harry could die. . . I haven't really chosen an ending yet.  
  
2. Does he ever get wings?  
  
2. That's a spoiler, but I'll consent this once. Yes, eventually he'll have wings.  
  
3. Will Snape be nicer to Harry?  
  
3. Probably not, but we'll see.  
  
4. Is there Hermione/Harry romance or any romance at all?  
  
4. No. I'm not big on that kind of thing in Harry Potter fics. There might be a little romance, nothing too deep, later on, but don't count on it. This isn't a romance fic.  
  
5. Regarding challenges:  
  
5. Yes, Illustrious Sorrow, you may use the challenge. Have fun with it! Silent but Sassy, tackle number four. Lemmie know when it's posted!  
  
I'm so sorry this took so long. . . life's been unmerciful lately, and sometimes things come up that take the place of time one could use for fanfics. I'll update asap though! 


	6. Snape and Soaring

"There! I knew it!" Hermione exclaimed, after reading the passage that Harry had showed Ron. "The scars on his chest, the way he's been acting, the reason he's changing; it all points to what happened to him this summer! If only he'd just tell us what the Dursley's did. . ."  
  
"You know, we could just ask him," Ron said.  
  
Hermione stared at him as if he had just said 'I'm running off with Draco Malfoy'. "Ron, you don't just ASK someone about all the horrible things that happened to them over the summer! Imagine how you'd feel!"  
  
Ron blushed a little. "Well sorry, I mean, I'm sorta new at this you know. I mean, we've never had to, you know, help Harry with this kind of problem before. It's always been something else."  
  
Hermione nodded sadly. "I know what you mean. Regardless, however, Harry needs our help. If that potion isn't brewed, he could be trapped as a Phoenix forever! Have you seen the tattoo on his hand yet?"  
  
Ron looked down guiltily. "I was surprised after I read that paragraph. I didn't bother to look."  
  
Hermione shook her head dismissively. "Either way, we need to brew that potion for Harry. He needs us to do this for him, whether he'd ask us or not."  
  
Ron's eyes widened suddenly as he followed Hermione's train of thought. "Wait. . . we aren't paying Snape's storage room a visit again, are we?"  
  
Hermione's firm glare silenced any other questions Ron would have liked to ask.  
  
  
  
In the dungeons, Snape was hunched over a brewing cauldron, pinching his nose in irritation. He scowled at the potion, willing himself to pretend it was Potter, silently cursing it for all the trouble it was giving him. Basilisk fangs! He was honestly expected to be able to find a Basilisk fang?! And that bloody Phoenix, Fox, or Fakes, or whatever the heck its name was, would not cooperate to give in tears, nevermind burning itself to give up its ashes. Snape even humiliated himself by begging the annoying bird to shed at least one tear, yet the bird simply glared at him and ruffled its feathers. It, like many people, obviously did not like Snape.  
  
The only things Snape had collected so far was the dragon ingredients (which was plentiful), the erumpent horns, the flobberworm mucous, the unicorn horn, the wiggentree bark, and a few hairs from Harry. The acromantula eyes, he'd try to get off of Hagrid. As for the Phoenix items, he was nearly ready to grab his wand and avada kedevra the stupid creature until it was crying a river of ingredients. Then he'd burn the body himself and take the ashes. Snape smirked inwardly at his fantasy. It would be so easy to just go up there and bully that bird. . .  
  
Snape gritted his teeth in annoyance when his fantasy was disturbed by the sound of two students talking.  
  
"Come on, Hermione! Couldn't we find ingredients somewhere else? Somewhere far away from anything Slytherin?"  
  
"For the last time, RONALD, we need to get the ingredients. If you complain one more time I swear, I'll-"  
  
Just two annoying students, that was all. Two annoying students in his classroom after school hours was over, and he hadn't issued any detentions. Two annoying students. . . two annoying students?! Granger and Weasley?!  
  
"Hermione, what if he's-"  
  
"-RIGHT BEHIND YOU!!!??"  
  
Both students screamed and whirled around to see a furious Snape standing behind them.  
  
"Professor Snape, we were just-"  
  
"-taking a little stroll in the dungeons?" Snape finished, incredulously. "Perhaps, coming to do some extra studying on potions? No, let me guess, perhaps you were wondering if you could have some private classes?" With that said, Snape sneered.  
  
"Professor Snape, we're here because we need some ingredients," Hermione answered, honestly. Both Ron and Snape gave her startled looks. "You see, Harry is going through a transformation, and we need to make him a potion that would save him. If we could just look through your potions lists and figure out what ingredients we'd need. . ." she trailed off when Snape gestured to a large, bubbling cauldron in front of his desk.  
  
Ron managed to figure out what Snape's gesture meant. "No way. YOU'RE brewing the potion to save Harry?" Snape nodded his head, too weary to really care to argue with the annoying boy at the moment.  
  
Hermione walked over to the list by the cauldron, studying the ingredients. "Basilisks fang, Phoenix ashes, and Dragon blood all in the same potion? Isn't that a bit odd?"  
  
Snape nodded his head again. "Mind you, miss Granger, that this is not the average potion either."  
  
Hermione looked back at the list and furrowed her brow in contemplation. "Professor? May I ask where you're going to find a Basilisk fang, Acromantula eyes, and Phoenix ashes and tears?"  
  
Snape did his best to control his frustration, after merely seconds ago asking himself the same questions. "I will ask Hagrid for his assistance with these particular ingredients."  
  
"You can do that if you want, even though I know where you can find all of them," Ron said casually. His eyes widened in horror as he realized he had said that outloud, and he quickly looked at Snape as if hoping he hadn't heard. Unfortunately for him, Snape had heard.  
  
"Explain, Weasley," Snape said dangerously, slowly advancing as a wolf would advance on a cornered deer.  
  
"Well, I, er, don't know what I was saying really, that is, well, it, isn't it, wow, look at the time!" Ron started moving as if he meant to leave, but he froze in place when he say Snape's wand pointing at him.  
  
"I am not in a cheerful mood today, Weasley. Now tell me where I can find what I need and I will be on my way."  
  
Ron gulped nervously and nodded his head quickly. "I can take you to Aragog for the acromantula eyes; there's lots of them there. And as for the fang, Harry could lead you down to the Chamber of Secrets; there's lots of fangs on that Basilisk. As for the Phoenix tears, couldn't you just ask for Harry to give you some from his own eyes? I mean, technically, they are Phoenix tears."  
  
Snape, for the moment, was speechless. There was no way he would have thought to go into the Forbidden Forest or into a girl's bathroom to find two of the particular ingredients, but he was floored by the fact that he hadn't thought of using Potter's own tears as Phoenix tears. It made sense, since Potter was half human and half phoenix at the moment. Snape managed to come out of his stupor for the moment.  
  
"As thrilled as I am that you actually managed to come up with a nearly intelligent thought, I believe standing around in my classroom will not bring us any closer to brewing a cure for Potter."  
  
With that, Snape started sweeping out of the dungeons, in the way he always did, leaving Hermione and Ron to try to catch up to his long strides. As they made their way across the grounds, none of them were aware of the fact that a pair of green eyes, from the seventh floor tower, were watching them carefully.  
  
  
  
"Mione!" Ron whimpered for the millionth time, in under ten minutes. "Do we really need to do this?!" Hermione rolled her eyes, yet grinned inwardly at Ron's hopelessly cracking voice. "I'm serious, Mione! Spiders and me don't get along! They try to eat me!"  
  
"Weasley, do us all a favor and close your mouth before I call the spiders over to devour you as a personal favor to me," Snape bit out, not even bothering to turn around. Ron merely whimpered in reply.  
  
"How much further is it?" Hermione asked, after a period of silence had passed by.  
  
"Not much. It's just ahead, actually," Ron said, his voice still wobbling hopelessly.  
  
"You two listen to me, and listen carefully," Snape said, finally turning around to look at the two of them. "When we reach the Acromantula nest, I will cast a dormancy spell that should effect each of the spiders present."  
  
"Should? Should? There's no guarantee?!" Ron squeaked, nearing hysteria.  
  
"Weasley, control yourself. After I cast the spell, Each of you must go to two different spiders and pluck one of their eyes out. Then I want you to put them in these jars." Snape handed both of them a glass jar. "Remember to move quickly and quietly."  
  
"Professor, spiders have over six eyes. Why don't we remove six of them from one spider?"  
  
"Because these are not just spiders, these are Acromantulas. They rely heavily on eye sight and will likely die if more than two are taken."  
  
"Who cares? That'd be a blessing!" Ron insisted. An icy glare from Snape and a disapproving glare from Hermione shut him up instantly.  
  
Carefully, the trio crept toward the nest of arachnids. Then, Snape drew his wand and cried "Abeyance Corpilius!" After the light had settled, he motioned for Ron and Hermione to follow him into the enclosure.  
  
"Ugh," Ron said in disgust, after he plucked an eyeball from a rather large Acromantula, "this is disgusting!"  
  
"Be glad you aren't a potions professor then," Snape snarled.  
  
"I actually find this all rather interesting," Hermione said. "It would be fascinating to study the anatomy of an Acromantula and compare it to that of a typical spider, like the common spider found in Hogwarts. The differences-"  
  
"Hermione, you're killing me!" Ron complained. Hermione simply huffed in an indignant fashion and when back to eyeball plucking. Five minutes later, and one eyeball left to go, the sound of rumbling could be heard nearby.  
  
"Ron, you wolfed down your supper today in the Great Hall already, so tell me how you could still possibly be hungry?"  
  
"That wasn't me!" Ron complained. Snape looked up quickly and walked over to where the two were bickering. As he scanned the forest, he could see what appeared to be a mass of black heading in their direction. That mass of black soon proved itself to be an angry group of Acromantulas.  
  
Snape whirled around furiously at Ron. "Why didn't you tell me there were more of them than this!?" he said, gesturing to the still dormant Acromantulas.  
  
"How was I supposed to know!" Ron complained. "Last time I was here, Harry and I were slightly more concerned with escaping alive, never mind playing count the flesh eating spiders!"  
  
"They're almost here, we need to go now!" Hermione shouted. The three of the whirled around (Snape plucking the last eyeball) and ran as fast as they could in the direction of Hogwarts. In a few moments, however, it became painfully evident that without the flying car, the spiders would soon overtake them.  
  
"Professor Snape," Ron panted, while running, "isn't there a spell you could do? Something to stop them?"  
  
"Unfortunately, no," Snape panted back. "With how close they are, they would be on top of us before the spell could be finished."  
  
As the three ran around a turn, they skidded to a stop. In front of them was a rock wall, blocking them from escaping. Directly behind them, the Acromantulas were quickly advancing.  
  
Snape's eyes darted back and forth, looking truly panicked. They were trapped with no way out and a hungry group of acromantulas in front of them. By the blubbering from the Weasley boy, this was his worst nightmare come true. A couple of the larger creatures sprang at them, their pincers bared and ready for killing. Just as they were about to close around Snape's neck, a red and black blur shot by, knocking the creature to the ground. The flying thing circled around and came back, attacking the spiders from the air and driving them back. Realizing that this new creature had the advantage, the spiders hurriedly fled.  
  
"What is that?" Ron asked, as the blur came closer. "It looks sorta. . ."  
  
"Harry?"  
  
"No, Hermione. It's not hairy. Looks more feathery to me. Why did you-" Ron gaped as the blurred creature came into focus when it landed on the ground before them. There stood Harry Potter, his head a mass of black, scarlet, and gold feathers. As he rolled down his sleeves, long plumages of feathers became visible on his arm.  
  
Harry Potter could fly.  
Author Notes: Whew! It sure took me a long time to update. But I have not died, I live still.  
  
Unfortunately, I will not have time to respond to all my reviewers anymore since I'm so pressed for time now a days. So If you have any questions at all, e-mail me and I'll acknowledge them when I update. Please, keep reviewing even if I can't mention your name here. Reviews are what keep me updating, and if the reviews stop, so will the updates.  
  
I want to give credit for the Acromantula/ Basilisk fang thing to Mark Scotson. Excellent idea and thanks for reviewing!  
  
I'll update soon, hopefully, so review if you want a quick update! 


	7. Skirmishes and Snidgets

Harry itched at his arms in annoyance as he sat in Dumbledore's office. The long feathers were hidden back under his sleeves, but they sure itched a lot. It was no wonder why birds spent so much time preening themselves. Professor Snape and Dumbledore were talking in hushed whispers, not too far away, while Ron and Hermione fidgeted uncertainly next to him in their chairs.  
  
Suddenly, Ron's face broke into a huge grin. "Harry, since you can fly now, imagine the possibilities! You'll butcher the Slytherins in Quidditch! I mean, who needs a broom if you got built on wings!"  
  
"Ron! You know just as well as Harry and I do that Quidditch is played on brooms!" Hermione scolded.  
  
"That's just because most people can't fly!" Ron retorted. "Imagine the look on Malfoy's face when Harry dives off his broom and flies after the snitch! That'd be priceless!"  
  
Harry couldn't help but grin himself at that thought. It'd be worth exposing his secret to the school just to see the Slytherins cry out in shock as the Gryffindor seeker flew broomless.  
  
"Harry, may I have a word with you?" Dumbledore said suddenly. Harry stood and crossed the room to where Snape and Dumbledore were. When he reached them, Dumbledore motioned the two of them to go into the back room, where he normally held conferences with people that he didn't want to have interrupted. Once in there, he turned his attention back to Harry.  
  
"Potter, how far have your transformations gone?" Snape asked, bluntly.  
  
Harry blinked for a moment before stuttering, "W-what do you mean?"  
  
"Harry, we need to know how far along in the transformation process you are," Dumbledore said, softly. "Take these shorts and go ahead and change into them in the bathroom over there. We need you to take off your robe, shirt, and pants so we can see how far you've transformed."  
  
Harry would have liked very much to argue that he didn't want to, but he knew that would get him nowhere. Silently, he took the shorts and walked out of the room to change.  
  
When he came back in, he stood silently, feeling very exposed. Dumbledore and Snape both gaped for a moment before quickly regaining neutral expressions. Harry's skin had turned from being moonlight pale to a bronze gold, and not the sort one could get from a tan. When he held his arms straight out, the plumage of the draping feathers fell to his waist. The feathers on his head were no longer than his hair had been, yet they were still very much feathers. His toe nails were starting to look a little more like talons, though not very much, and the shape of his eyes were slightly more hawkish looking. Dumbledore then asked him to turn around so he could see his back. At first glance, it looked as though Harry had a terrible, metallic sunburn. His skin was deep red with black accents and gold highlights running along it. The feathers from his arms were Scarlet with gold on the very tips with black on the scarlet, forming a zigzag pattern.  
  
"How far along is he in the transformation," Snape murmured so only Dumbledore could hear.  
  
"It's happening much quicker than I had expected it to," Dumbledore admitted quietly. "He should have looked like this four months from now. We're going to need to put a speeding charm on the potion to have it finished in time."  
  
"Professor?" Both Dumbledore and Snape looked at Harry. "May I put my robe back on? It's a little chilly. . ."  
  
"Of course," Dumbledore said. He then walked over to his bookshelf, scanning the titles of the books as Harry pulled his robe back on. "Harry, do you know what sort of Phoenix you are becoming?"  
  
"Er, no sir. I didn't really know there were more than one sort, actually," Harry admitted, softly.  
  
Dumbledore took a book off the shelf and approached Harry again. "There are five different sorts of Phoenix, Harry. The very first Phoenix was the Greek Phoenix. They are nearly always solid red, though occasionally they have purple somewhere on them. They looks sort of like a mixture between an Eagle and a pheasant. Then, there's the Ho-Ho, or Japanese Phoenix. They're swan like birds that are either all red with yellow and orange and long necks, which is what Fawkes is, or they're white with any other colors you can imagine on their wings and tails. Then, there's the fire Phoenix, which is made entirely out of fire. They're quite rare and can only survive in Volcanoes. There's the Augurey, or the Irish Phoenix, which is all blue and black in color. It constantly loses its feathers and cries all the time. It's song even drives people insane!"  
  
"Please, Headmaster, tell me I'm not going to be an Augurey!" Harry pleaded.  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "No, Harry, you will not be an Augurey. You're turning into this last breed that I was about to mention. It's the Arabic Phoenix. They're built like a combination between an eagle and hawk, and they are the smallest breed of Phoenix. Their top half is scarlet with intricate designs on their wings. Their lower half is gold. They are closely related in appearance to the Greek Phoenix, and they have the ability of the Phoenix song and tears that the Ho-Ho has. Being that they are the smallest Phoenix, they are also the fastest fliers. They have terrific eyesight, for they can spot anything from miles away. Their tail feathers aren't extremely long, for that would slow their flight, yet it is longer than the average bird. They are also sometimes called 'the healer birds', for they were known at one time to fly around in the skies, seeking out the ill and injured, then they'd heal them. They also never attack anyone or anything unless they are attacked first. They burn every fifty years." Dumbledore then handed Harry the book he was holding with a picture and description of an Arabic Phoenix. Harry was stunned at the sight of the bird. If he had thought Fawkes was a pretty bird, then the Arabic Phoenix was gorgeous. He had never seen anything like it in his life.  
  
"So, I'm going to be that?" Harry asked, breathlessly.  
  
"Yes, I believe it is safe to say you are," Dumbledore chuckled. Snape glanced at the picture of the Phoenix, then looked up at Harry with respect. He quickly masked it with a scowl.  
  
"Now, I do believe that is all, Harry. If you notice any other changes, please inform us immediately," Dumbledore said firmly. "You may go back to your dormitory after you change back into your clothes."  
  
*Thank you, sir.* Harry grimaced slightly as Dumbledore laughed. "Er, Thank you sir."  
  
  
  
Author's Notes: I did not make up any of the stuff about the Phoenixes, just to let everyone know. The Augurey is the creation of JK Rowling, and is from the Book of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. The other four have lived in legends for as long as people have been around. Also, the Snidget comes from Quidditch Through the Ages. Once again, it is not my own creation.  
  
Also, I just need to clear something up real quick. A lot of you have e- mailed me, telling me that I completely copied Lela Star. I did not in any way copy her fic, Dying Angel. I put up the challenge in June 2002, and SHE asked ME if she could use the fic. I gave her permission, but she never gave me credit. Those of you who told me about this to try to save me from trouble (jenny), I thank you very much for looking out for me. For those of you who were accusing, I'd like you to remember that I said very specifically earlier that I have a LIST of everyone who has answered my challenges in my author bio. LelaStar is in there. So please, look before you accuse. My challenge were posted in June 2002, so any response after that is either in response to my challenge, or they're stealing it from me. Please look at the publish date, and if it's earlier than when I posted, then feel free to accuse.  
  
Now, I'll answer some questions that some of you asked. I apologize that I can't thank each of you individually for reviews, but just know that I thank you very much for them. They mean a great deal to me.  
  
1. In response to Usaka, you can find a list of responses in my author bio. It has the title of the story and the authors next to it. Hope that helps!  
  
2. This is for Mark Scottson. Thanks for that second wonderful suggestion! You seriously should make an account and start writing. I'll see if I can take you up on that second idea too; it might appear in a future chapter. If it does, you'll get all the credit for it.  
  
Ok, that's all the questions I saw. I'll update again as long as the reviews come in! 


	8. Skirmishes and Snidgets part b

"Blimey, Harry!" Ron exclaimed after he and Hermione had finished reading the passage and looking at the picture of the Phoenix. "This is so cool! I mean, after you take the potion, you could do a lot with this new power! Fly, chase the Slytherins, defeat You-Know-Who, chase the Slytherins, heal people, chase Slytherins, live forever, chase the-"  
  
"Ron! He won't abuse the power by chasing Slytherins! Besides, you saw just as well as I do that they don't attack unless they're attacked first."  
  
"Looks like now's the perfect opportunity to prove that," Harry muttered to his friends. Malfoy and his group of Slytherins were coming in their direction. From a ways down the hallway, they had recognized Harry, and their words could be heard faintly, drifting down the hall.  
  
"Hey Potter, you're ugly, but what can you do? You really ought to be locked up in a zoo! If you looked in a mirror, it surely would crack! At least you look better than Sirius Black!" The whole group burst into laughter once they had stopped and were standing directly in front of the three Gryffindors. Normally, Harry would have felt slightly upset, knowing that what they said was true, for his former scars had always made him feel like a mutilated creature. After seeing the picture of the Arabic Phoenix, however, the words didn't bother him at all.  
  
"What's the matter, Potter, have nothing to say to us?" Draco mocked in fake surprise.  
  
"He could say plenty," Ron retorted. "He's just smart enough to know he doesn't need to sink to your level."  
  
Draco and the other Slytherins scowled, while Crabbe and Goyle balled their fists, threateningly. "You're one to talk about sinking to a lower level, Weasel. You're as poor as dirt."  
  
"Well, ferret, you and I clearly have different ideas on what poor is. I'd pity you if I didn't hate you so much."  
  
"At least I don't have feathers growing out of my head," Draco laughed. "What happened, Potter? Did a charm backfire? Or is your hair so messy that a bird decided to make it its nest!" Draco and his cronies laughed at that, and before anyone could stop him, Ron had charged at the group and thrown himself on them. Immediately, a fight followed, which Hermione backed away from so she wouldn't get drawn in. Harry sighed and threw himself into the tangle of limbs to try to break up Malfoy and Ron. After a few moments, Harry stood again with a cut lip, dragging up Ron, who had a black eye.  
  
"Come on, Ron, let's go back to our dormitory. We shouldn't waste our time on them," Harry said, softly. He and Hermione dragged Ron down the hallway and out of sight.  
  
Draco stood up and felt his cheek where Ron had punched him. He then looked down at the ground and smirked when he saw three feathers on the floor, one black, one red, and one gold. He stooped low to pick them up and pulled an envelope out of his pocket. He sealed the three feathers in the envelope, which was addressed to his father, and made his way to the Owlery to send it on its way.  
  
  
  
As Harry, Ron, and Hermione entered the Common Room, they noticed that no one else was around.  
  
"Where did everyone go?" Harry asked, into the quietness of the room. Shortly after, he answered the question himself. "Oh no. . . the Quidditch match! I completely forgot!"  
  
"Harry, we need to run if we're going to make it on time!" Ron said, urgently. All three of them took off at a run and split apart, Hermione running toward the Entrance Hall and Harry and Ron running to the changing rooms. He realized with a sinking heart that they'd never make it.  
  
"Forget this," Harry hissed, under his breath. He stopped running next to a window and carefully unlatched it.  
  
"Harry, what are you doing?" Ron whispered.  
  
"Trust me. Just grab a hold of my shoulders." Ron looked quizzical, yet he complied. Making sure that no one else was in the hall, Harry rolled up his sleeves and effortlessly leapt out. He spread his arms out to let the wings catch the air and he slowly drifted down, seven stories, to the ground.  
  
Ron grinned. "Nice work. We better get a move on, though." They immediately made a bee line for the changing rooms and skidded to a halt once they were inside. Fred, George, and Katie were pacing in agitation. Ginny, who had replaced Angelina after she graduated, was sitting on the bench, looking worried. She blushed when she saw Harry come in.  
  
"There you two are! We were worried!" Katie exclaimed. "We thought we'd need to play without a seeker or a keeper!"  
  
In the beginning of the year, try outs had been held for another chaser and a keeper. Ginny and Ron had gotten the positions with ease, making the team nearly entirely made up of Weasleys. Fred and George just boasted that it ran in their blood (though they explained off Percy as a fluke).  
  
"Sorry," Harry apologized. "Just got held up a little." He and Ron changed into their Quidditch robes quickly before they met up with the rest of their team.  
  
Fred grinned at Harry. "Honestly, Harry. It wouldn't look good if our captain didn't show up for his own game!" Harry grinned back, feeling proud again of his position. He doubted he'd ever be as great a captain as Wood was, but he always did his best.  
  
The Gryffindor team marched out to the field, their brooms in their hands, and faced the Slytherin team. Harry double checked to make sure his sleeves were pulled down to completely cover his arms. Satisfied that they were fine, he turned to reluctantly shake hands with Draco, the new Slytherin Quidditch captain. At Madame Hooch's whistle, they mounted their broom sticks and hovered slightly above the ground. Once the balls were released, two more whistle blasts sounded and the game took off.  
  
"Beautiful flying from Katie Bell as she swerves the pick block just there. She's nearing to score and. . . YES! Ten points for Gryffindor! Nott is in possession now, moving to the midway mark! A Bludger's coming at him, but Rosier blocks for him! Darn, it nearly would've knocked him off too. . ."  
  
"JORDAN!" McGonagall could be heard yelling, shortly afterward.  
  
Harry wasn't as concerned about what was going on around him. Malfoy was tailing him steadily, watching him for any sign of the snitch. Harry tried to block him out, searching for the little streak of gold. Suddenly, he saw it and dove for it. Malfoy followed quickly as they both dove for it. Harry broke ahead and reached out. He felt a grin plaster itself across his face as his fingers closed over it.  
  
"YES! Gryffindor wins! This will go down in the school's history as the shortest game ever played!"  
  
Harry grinned as he opened his hand to see the snitch, but his smile was immediately replaced with a look of shock and confusion. In his hand was something that looked an awful lot like a snitch, but it was. . .well. . . alive. A little, round, pudgy, golden bird with a long beak and black eyes stared up at him. Its little wings, which had been beating like a humming bird, were tucked against its body as it cocked its head to the side and looked up at Harry.  
  
"What the. . ." Harry murmured softly, as he looked at the tiny creature.  
  
"There seems to be some sort of confusion," Lee's voice boomed over the crowd. "Madame Hooch is flying up to see what the problem is."  
  
"Mr. Potter, what is the problem?" Hooch said, once she had pulled level with Harry. Harry simply held out his hand with the tiny bird. "My goodness. . ." Hooch gasped as she looked at the bird. "That's a Golden Snidget!"  
  
Draco nearly fell off his broom in shock. "A Snidget! How did he find a Snidget?!"  
  
"I officially award Gryffindor the game and thirty points to their house!" Hooch declared. The crowd's cheering out weighed the Slytherin's booing.  
  
As Harry touched down, Hermione broke out of the crowd to meet him. "Hermione, what's going on?"  
  
Hermione grinned at him. "Harry, you caught a Snidget! A real live Snidget!"  
  
"So?" Harry asked, confused, "What's so great about that?"  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Harry, it says in chapter four of Quidditch Through the Ages that the Snidget is what the Snitch was modeled after! In the twelfth century, the Snidget was added to the game and seekers would seek it out to catch it. Whichever team caught the Snidget was given the win and 150 galleons at the end of the game (the galleons became points later on). The problem was that most of the time, the Snidget would get crushed and killed in the hand of the seeker and eventually, Snidgets became endangered. Bowman Wright invented the Snitch to be like a Snidget, so Snidgets were left alone and the Golden Snitch was created. Harry, you're holding a very rare and endangered bird!"  
  
Harry looked down at the Snidget that was looking up at him with curious eyes. It cooed softly and nipped at his fingers genty with it's long, hummingbird like beak.  
  
"I think we better go see Hagrid about it," Harry said, cupping it protectively in his hands. "I wouldn't want Hedwig to eat it. . ." 


	9. Thus Spoke the Raven

Thus Spoke the Raven:  
  
Hi all, and sorry to say that this is NOT an update for this fanfic. I've put together some challenges, and the list is going to be at the end of each of my fics. Angst, humor, suspense, whatever I feel like writing a challenge on will be in here, and I'll be adding other challenges as I think of them, so be sure to keep checking back if you're interested. Also, most of these ideas are original, so I would like credit for them. If you've written one of these ideas already into a fanfic, and I've accidentally stolen it from you, e-mail me with a link to the fanfic, I'll check it out, apologize, and remove the challenge. For my original challenges, however, I would appreciate if credit is given to me for the initial idea. Have fun!  
  
1. True Identities  
  
We've all read about Harry getting adopted by Snape, or Snape being Harry's father, or Sirius coming to save Harry but then they get captured (my personal favorite ^_^), but I have a new proposition to make that I haven't seen appear in any fanfics I've read so far.  
  
What if Harry Potter isn't really Harry Potter? What if James and Lily were watching someone else's kid on that night, along with their own child? If the real Harry Potter was killed with his parents, and his body lost in the debris, then who is the boy that the world calls Harry Potter? What's his real name? Who were his parents? Are his parents still alive? Why didn't anyone realize the truth before? If it wasn't James and Lily Harry saw in the mirror of Erised, who was it? And what about Voldemort? Does he know who Harry really is, or has he been chasing after an already dead person all these years?  
2. "There Is No Good and Evil"  
  
Do you remember when Voldemort said those words in book one? He said "There is no good and evil. Only power, and those too weak to seek it", or something like that. What if he was telling the truth? What if there is no good an evil after all? Could this whole ordeal just be a struggle for power between two forces? In this fic, Aurors are the "light" sides death eaters. If any one gets in the way, they're dealt with. Now that Harry has figured out that he's just been fed lies about light and dark, he needs to make a choice. Which power force does he want to join? Voldemort, who has been straightforward truthful to him, or Dumbldore, who has protected him, yet kept certain parts of his life a secret? And why did Voldemort kill Harry's parents?  
3. The Lion's Serpent:  
  
I've thought of three different ways this fic could turn out, so I'll list off the options after I'm done with the general summary.  
  
Harry is still on summer break, trying to move on with his life and cope with what happened in the third task of the Triwizard Tournament. He keeps having dreams of Voldemort's actions; he's forced to watch what Voldemort does to his victims. Just when Harry thinks he can't stand to watch anymore, the dreams stop. Shortly after the dreams stop, a black haired orphan ends up on the Dursley's door step. He's five years old, and his name is Tom, but he can't remember anything else. Harry feels a pang of sympathy for the child, and lets him stay in his room. Harry becomes the parent image for Tom, and they grow quite close. When it's time for Harry to go to Hogwarts, he brings his "adopted son" with him and convinces the teachers to let him stay at the school so that Harry can take care of him.  
  
A: Tom's memory suddenly comes back one day. Tom now knows who he is and what happened, but what will he do? Has his love for his new "father" changed him into a better person? Will he attempt to regain his former body? Will he still try to kill Harry? If he decides he wants things to remain the same, will he even tell Harry the truth?  
  
B: Tom's memory doesn't appear to be coming back at all. One day, he says he thinks his last name is Riddle, however, and that catches Harry's attention immediately. Suddenly, Harry recognizes his "son" for being Tom Riddle, a younger Voldemort, and the murderer of his parents. What will Harry do? Will he try to kill him? Will he, like Tom's real father, abandon him? Will he hand him over to the Ministry? Or has Harry's love for his new "son" grown so deep, that he'll shelter Tom from his horrible past and work to give him a brighter future?  
  
C: Harry and Tom suddenly realize, at the same moment, the truth about Tom. It happens suddenly, after months of Tom being five years old. Now that they both know the truth, what will happen? Will one of them reject the other? Will they go back to being enemies? Or will Tom's need for a parent and Harry's need for someone to love, and feel loved back from, intercede and keep them together?  
  
This was not intended to be a slash, even though I'll leave that up to the author.  
  
4. In The Name of Merlin!:  
  
Everyone in the wizarding world knows who Merlin is. Everyone also knows how the story of Merlin goes. Merlin, in the end, was defeated by being seduced by Vivien (aka the lady of the lake) He revealed his power to her, and she cast a spell on him forever trapping him within an oak tree (A/N: I did not make that up, that's how the original story of Merlin goes; I'm just using the background info to help with this idea). What no one knows is that Merlin indeed broke free again, years later, and is now using the name Albus Dumbledor. Now Harry has put all the facts together and has discovered Dumbledor's, or rather Merlin's, secret. Even more, Harry found out that he's related to Dumbledor! Does Voldemort know about Dumbledor's secret? Could that be why Voldemort was always so afraid of him? Will the rest of the Wizard community find out?  
  
I decided to leave more room for creativity in this one. Basically, have fun with it. Once again, please leave a review with it if you plan to use it and I do like getting credit. Also, if you need more info on Merlin (His Animagus forms, powers, history, etc) just ask, and I'll give it.  
  
5. Dying Angel  
  
Severus Snape, feared potions master of Hogwarts, decides that midway through the summer holiday, he's going to take his fifth year Slytherins on an out of school field trip. This is no ordinary field trip, however. The assignment is to study a wizard that lives in a muggle family to observe the difference in this wizard's life style over the summer. The vote from the Slytherins was unanimous. Harry Potter. Snape casts an invisibility/ sound proof charm on his class and himself and they floo powdered themselves to the Dursley's. They were quite surprised at what they found. Harry Potter, the Golden Boy Who Lived, loved by good, feared by evil, teacher's pet, goody-goody, angel child, was in reality abused by his relatives. He's quite thin and tattered, covered in cuts and bruises. His eyes are dull, and his voice toneless. He is shy, timid, and skittish; he seems to be afraid of people. Even worse, the Dursley's enrolled him in a summer school, and Harry is back to being the small, skinny, pale kid that's easy to beat up and pick on. Snape realizes that Harry is dying a little every day with the combination of his nightmares in both a state of dormancy and consciousness. Snape is utterly horrified at watching the way Harry is treated. One day, as the class is still observing Harry, his uncle gives Harry the worst beating ever. Snape can no longer stand aside, and he comes to Harry's aid. Now Harry is in the care of Snape and the other Slytherins. Will this be the chance to break the ice between the Gryffindor and Slytherin house? Will Harry ever be the same person again? And when school starts again, will Snape be able to let Harry go?  
  
This one wasn't my most original, but I still have yet to find a fic that matches this criteria.  
  
6. The Truth About Voldemort  
  
This one is supposed to be a humor fic. Basically, Harry is dragged to a Michael Jackson concert by Hermoine and some other muggles, ang lo and behold! Michael Jackson, in reality, is Voldemort! Harry doesn't know how he could have missed it before. . . the long fingers, the beyond white skin, the serpentine nose. . . What will happen when Harry delivers this news to the wizarding world??? That's all for now, I'll add new ideas as I think of them. If you want to use one of these, just leave the challenge's number or title in a chapter review (not the challenges review since the reviews would get deleted) Thanks again, and enjoy writing!  
Free Post Section:  
  
This is a section where I will post challenges from other people who wish to have them posted here. If you would like to post a challenge here, then let me know, and I'll post it and make sure you get credit for it. If you want to use any of these challenges, don't ask me, ask the person who came up with it. I'll leave their pen name or e-mail address so you can get persmission.  
  
Pen name Fire Mage:  
1. AU What if the Dursleys really /had/ done everything to stop Harry from learning magic? The Dursleys move to America as soon as they get Harry. They decide to treat him okay, since they don't want him knowing that there's anything special about him. They forbid the children to read fantasy books, or watch fantasy movies. So their kids fall in love with science fiction. They dream to fly in a space ship once, and save the universe from aliens. When Harry gets the letter he just throws it in the trash, and continues dreaming of a career as an astonaut or pilot of a spaceship. The wizards are really annoyed that their best man is a science fiction freak, when a Slytherin gets the idea to tell him that he's being recruted to fight an alien (Voldemort). This alien had gotten humans to follow him, and looked a little like a snake. They're rather surprised with how fast Harry agrees to fight the alien. He's told that wands are high- tech weapons, and he had to speak different words to get it to do different things. He's a really fast learner, and is soon ready to fight Voldemort. Everyone is really confused when he calls Voldemort an alien, and uses the wand like a gun. He wins, and finds out that Voldemort wasn't really an alien. He's so angry that he just goes back home, and becomes an astonaut. In the end he really encounters aliens, and destroys them. Then the muggles celebrate him, and the wizards just shake their heads. It's beyond their comprehension.  
  
2. What if Harry had run away from the Dursleys when he was four, and now living in the Scottish mountains. He hates humans, and is able to talk with the wild life. He uses his abilities to heal the plants and animals. Yes, he has to eat, but he only eats with permission, and even then he tries to make it as painless as possible. Then he weeps bitterly for the animal he had to kill to live. The animals always come to him and reasure him that he's just following the laws of nature. His home is paradise, and he enjoys it fully. His eleventh birthday comes, he gets the letter, and he sends back a note that he's content in being where he is. Everything is perfect for him, until his best friend, an eagle, is killed and a signiture, a green skull with a snake winding around it, is hoovering over his body. He lets his anger take hold of him, and sets out to destroy this person that killed his friend. With him come many of his other friends. They acidently find Hogwarts, where Harry finds out that it was Voldemort, and that he had also killed Harry's parents. He accepts the offered training, and the animals stay around. They have taken on the role of his bodguard, and the bigger ones that were resistant to magic guard the gates. The ones that couldn't really do either that well just lounged around. When Harry was ready he attacks and kills Voldemort. Then he returns to his mountain, and lives in harmony till the next time.  
  
3. Harry Potter/Discworld crossover. Harry is actually Death, and a double has to jump in for him when he's off on his 'Death' duties. Then one day he has to kill Voldemort, and take his soul at the same time. How can he keep them from finding out?  
  
4. In his fifth year Harry goes away from Hogwarts, and comes back under an other name, and other features. He basically looks the same except he'S got contacts that make his eyes look grey, and has died his hair green, then made it stick up straight with gel. No one recognises him. His name is Alexander Jameson. Voldemort is searching the country for him, while he is just enjoying a year at Hogwarts. The only thing is that he has to keep up his disguise, and let the hat put him in Slytherin this time, because he thought that this would make it even less likely that anyone would figure him out.  
  
5. Ranma 1/2 and Harry Potter crossover. Harry goes to Japan to the Saotome family, because they still owe Dumbledore a favor. Ranma gets the brilliant idea to have Harry purposely fall into one of the springs, and get Voldemort off his trail like that. Well Harry turns into an oriental dragon, which are much more powerful than the European ones, because they're able to use magic most of the time. Well, the dragon tamers are trying to catch him, to keep him in check, and Voldemort wants to catch him too, because the dragons are so powerful. One question: how many more brilliant ideas will Ranma have, and will we survive them?  
  
6. Ron, Fred and George are tripplets. Fred and George are in Slytherin with Harry, and Ron is in Ravenclaw. Ron thinks up the pranks, and the other three carry them out. Hermione is in Ravenclaw, and their main enemy. She's always trying to convince the house that Ron is involved in the pranking, but no one believes her.  
  
7. AU fic where Petunia hast to work when the two are about two years old, and they need a nani. Marry Poppins shows up, and helps the Dursleys accept Harry, and in so doing changes the books, because Harry got along with the Dursleys since then. They moved to Canada and weren't heard of by the wizarding world since. Voldemort never got the stone, because of the Mirror of Erised, so he's still teaching there and no one knows. Well, the wizards in canada have been trying to track Harry down, and finally they find him and his family in a cottege in the woods. They're really happy, and they don't want to disturb them. They only say that they've been found, and tell their piers where. It's agreed to leave them alone unless dire circumstances call for it. One day Voldemort returns and they have to call on Harry. He reluctently follows the cry for help, and saves the world. All the while he just wants to return to the woods he loves so dearly. At the end he can, and he does. But by then a girl has fallen for him, and keeps on coming to visit him. Dudley isn't so fat, because he and Harry have always been playing in the woods. Harry is always gone when she comes, and that is no accident. He's afraid of girls, since he hasn't been around any other than his aunt. Their nany left when the wind changed. He does end up getting together with her, but half the time he's running away from her. The greatest dark lord ever can't scare him, but a simple girl scares the living daylights out of him.  
  
I will repeat, these challenges belong to Fire Mage and I pasted them with the exact words. Therefore, contact Fire Mage if you want to use any of these seven challenges. If anyone else wants to post a challenge on this post page, just e-mail or IM me, and I'll post them with credit to you, right away. 


	10. Chapter 10

Ok, ok, I know that this isn't a real update, so please don't report me! What I'm writing to say is that I'm back from the dead – check out my profile to see what's up and to vote on which fic gets fixed and updated first! It's in your hands right now, so let me know what you want and I'll do my best to deliver. Again, sorry for the excruciatingly long wait and, as soon as I know how many people want what, I'll have something new for you. It'll be here before Christmas if I get feedback!


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